Laura will be participating in the Mary O. Fritche Outdoor Art Show August 4th and 5th in Westhampton

Laura Loving in the Hamptons

The Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce presents "The Mary O. Fritche Outdoor Art Show" August 4th and 5th 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The fair will take place on the Village Green between Mill Road and Main Street.

Contemporary art with a southern accent is coming to Westhampton. New York artists Mary Klein and Laura Loving will be exhibiting original paintings at the Mary O. Fritche Outdoor Art Show in Westhampton August 4th and 5th on the Village Green (Mill Road and Main Street) 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Their work gracefully combines beginnings rooted in a culture of southern hospitality and their experiences living and working in the vibrant cultural capital of New York City.

Loving earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Georgia. Originally from Atlanta, and now based in New York City, she describes her work: “I take everyday images and recreate them into my own animated version of the world. I consider my art to be an invention of reality rather than purely an exact imitation. I exaggerate color and shape to create art that is humorous, alive and uplifting. Without question, I consider making a connection with someone through a painting the best part of being an artist.”

Best known for her colorful paintings of cityscapes, flowers, diet coke bottles, and people, Loving works with oil enamel on canvas and has developed a distinctive style consisting of bold lines, dramatic surface patterns and pure color that result in vibrant paintings with a certain poetic energy.

Klein, who is from Nashville and now lives in Brooklyn, has been called “a sophisticated self-taught artist” by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Of her “mysterious pears,” a signature image for Klein, the paper says: “people are fascinated by the paradoxes of their stolid whimsy.” Klein says of her art, “My work is an outward expression of my inner space, an admittedly very personal view of my experiences and interaction with the world around me.” She uses salvaged materials like old moldings, window sashes and ceiling tin to build her frames. “I feel a great sense of urgency to pick up cast-off things and create a more permanent expression of their passing energy.”

Both artists have exhibited in solo and group shows throughout the U.S. and abroad. In New York, Loving’s work has shown at Lincoln Center’s Cork Gallery, Pratt Institute, Anthem Gallery, and Trunkt Gallery. In 2005, she was hired to create the artwork for the Fall Cabaret Convention at Jazz at Lincoln Center. In Europe, she has shown with the Wonderwall Gallery in Cirencester, England, and Chaleurs du Sud in Nice, France. In Atlanta, Laura was commissioned to create the official serigraph for the 1998 Music Midtown Festival. Saks Fifth Avenue in Atlanta featured Laura’s paintings and art objects in their winter 2007 “Spotlight on Art.” The Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando, Fla., has acquired several of her paintings for their permanent collection.

Klein’s art hangs in homes, businesses and galleries throughout the world. Her work has been shown at Pratt Institute, The Outsider Art Show, and The Affordable Art Fair in New York. She has been featured in galleries in Atlanta, Austin, Greenwich, Miami, Nashville and Washington, DC to name a few. The House of Blues, with locations across the country, purchased over 100 pieces of Klein’s work which are now on display as a part of their permanent collection. Celebrities such as Jim Belushi have commissioned her work.

For more information on the artists, contact: Anthem Gallery, NYC 212-580-0856 or visit: www.marykleinart.com or www.LauraLoving.com .